Two FO

First to answer some of the comments

Felicia - the Concord mernio silk was from another eBay seller Mountain Shadow Ranch. Great service. I've finished spinning and plying this yarn and it's sitting on the bobbins relaxing for a day or two. I'd be skeining and measuring next week and then decide what I want to do with it- probably a Lacy Scarf.

Speaking of scarfs - I've finished my scarf for Celia's scarf exchange



It's a long skinny number with a little of Paton's Boa in it - just a hint - not too much so it won't be classified as a fugly scarf, I hope.


To Secret Pal - The Pagoda is like Deep red with warm undertones - it's not a burgundy, more like a deep chilli red. Not much variegation in any of the colours I received, more of a dappling. I'm tempted to use this yarn for Madli's shawl instead of the Knit Picks Shimmer in Turquoise Splendour.

And speaking of Madli's Shawl, here's the just finished, unblocked, ends not weaved in Lacy Lattice shawl modeled by a passing colleague.

Home Run

It's exciting when a project is near the finishing line. I don't feel like sleeping or working. In fact I worked on Lacy Lattice last night until I nearly nodded off and poked myself in the eye with my needles.

The best part is the the end of the project is a technique that I have not done before ie - knitting an edging sideways AND not having to graft or sew it back on to the main body of the stole.



Basically when you get to the end of the body, you cast on more stitches for the edging and then knit the last stitch of every other row with the first live stitch of the main body. And magically you get a nice knitted edging with no seam lines :).



Although I have to do something about casting-on part. See that funny top left corner? I really hope it can be fixed by blocking. I think I need to cast on a little tighter there.


Stay tuned for an F.O.

But first a rant....

You know I had a great morning today - got in to work fairly early and settling in when I got a message for a family member asking if I could ... .wait for it... patch some rotten old towels for her dogs.

I'm Like WTF!!!

When I was less than enthusiastic ( but of course can't really say no since it's family), she had the nerve to say " Oh but I thought you like sewing??"

Again WTF!

There's only so many hours in a day and with piles of piles of things to do around the house, husband away this weekend and one rambunctious 2 and half year old, you think I'd be jumping for joy to patch some old rags for your dogs!

When I, um, expressed the above in the best possible way, she said she'd take it to a seamstress to do. Well good luck to her!

The worst thing is, she succeeded in making me feel guilty about it.

Life's the pits, aint it?

And I was all cheered up by the arrival of my long awaited Malabrigo laceweight.

You'd think this would make a serious dent into my current lace kick, right? Riiiigggght.

After the incident above, I think I'm going on a serious lace buying frenzy.

From the top :- Flirtation, Pagoda and Damask Rose.

The Stole Story

I need to finish this stole. Well I need to finish a lot of things but I need to finish this stole because I shouldn't start another stole project (Madli's) until I'm done with this one.

It's not that I hate it or anything. I love its airy softness. I adore the seweet blue. The mohair gets in my eyes a bit but I like the lovely lacy halo effect.



THIS STOLE IS MADE FOR BLOCKING - Lacy Lattice Stole from Fiddlesticks Designs

It's that repeating middle section that kills me. I was supposed to do 18 repeats but I caved in and did 10. It's almost fingertip to fingertip for me anyway. With the border section and the edging to do, another 8 repeats would probably make it a sarong.



It drapes nicely over my office chair

The Almost Ab Fab Throw

Sometime at the beginning of the year I was quiet obsessed over the Colinette Ab Fab Throw Kit. I didn't think I could afford the kit but I patiently but slowly collected single skeins of what I thought would be a great individual colourway. I have but two more to go and then I just lost the passion. Killed cold or hot as the case may be.
It's just toooo hot here to have a wooly and snuggly throw like the Ab Fab throw.

Maybe it's because of the horrible heat wave we've been having lately, or because I did some housekeeping with my stash and was horrified. I'm in the process of getting some shelving for the craft room ( which is currently a room with a pile of boxes on the floor) and I am ruthlessly throwing out stuff that really needed to go, recycled or sold.

So my loss is your gain. Have a look at my destash page for a good deal on an almost Colinette Ab Fab throw. You need only two more skeins.

Secret Pal Six

Ooohooh I have a secret pal :). Heeeelllooooo Secret Pal.

So before I go off this weekend, here's my updated Q&A.

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer high- a nd/natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you?

Not really fussed - yarn selection here is so dismal that I am sure anything from US/UK/Canada is wonderful.


2. Do you spin? Crochet?

As you can see from the previous posts, I am kind of obsessed with spinning lately. I crochet but not lately though I do some Granny Squares once in a while.


3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.)

Not that I know of.



4. How long have you been knitting?

ohh maybe 20 years or so but I took a break for about 12 years and started again last August.


5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

My Amazon wishlist


6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

Lavender and violets


7. Do you have a sweet tooth?

prefer savoury


8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

Rubber stamping, cross stitch , hardanger, tatting ( also learning)


9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I like quite a variety ranging from Swing, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Maroon 5, Linkin Park ( no kidding) and the soundtrack to all the Lord of the Rings movies.


10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer?

I like anything except the blues and green. Have too much of them already.


11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

Married, one 2 and half year old son and no pets


12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know)

More time to knit. I know I can never have my own craft store but would like to do some teaching.


13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

Ohhh - I love handpainted yarn - because I live in a tropical country, the yarns I use and mostly lightweight - cotton or cotton blends. I'd like to get my hands on some Rowan Calmer.


14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I had some mohair in my stash but have decided that it is too too hot . Although this doesn't include any of the laceweight mohair like Kid Silk Haze or Kid Seta.


15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

Gathering of Lace shawls, designing my own pattern


16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

Lace and more lace


17. What are you knitting right now?

err - Plain Opal Socks, Bad Penny Cardigan, Kerry Blue Shawl


18. What do you think about ponchos?

don't think I'll ever wear them


19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? I can do both


20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

no bamboos - for some reason I can handle the squeeking as they rub together


21. Are you a sock knitter?

I'm a beginner. I have done one and a half pairs of socks.


22. How did you learn to knit?

A teacher in boarding school taught me how to contruct a sweater - before that I just knew the basic rib- purl straight rectangular type of knitting.


23. How old is your oldest UFO?

Must I tell?? maybe about 1 year or so?


24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

Boo - from Monsters Inc and I like cats


25. What is your favorite holiday?

Christmas


26. Is there anything that you collect?

Koigu. Any type of Lace weight yarn


27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

None, but I occasionally get Interweave and Vogue knitting - especially the spring and summer issues.


28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on?

Books on spinning techniques, knitting on the edge and beyong the edge, Barbara walkers books, german lace magazines


29. Any patterns you have been coveting, but haven't bought for one reason or another??

Tina shawl from Fiddlesticks - juts haven't finished with my current bunch of fiddlesticks patterns so I haven't got around with another order.


30. What are your foot measurements, and what kind of socks do you like?

European 37 US 5 UK 4.5 - any type of socks.

Ply Please

Ok here's another ongoing post on my plying experiments. I got more pics with a little better detail although they are a little dark.

First up - Plying from two bobbins without regard to colourways



I decided to go random on this one and there were some stunning duotone results.


Navajo Ply - The Cool Cabled Composition



This keeps the colourway intact but oh what a bitch to do. It already takes enough of my attention to keep the wheel going without having to make chains as well. The number of times I got my hand stuck in a ever enclosing loop of yarn, resulting in panicked attempts to ensure blood circulation is not cut off - Countless!



But look at how the yarn is all snugly plied against each other. Sweet!

Lastly the Shimmering Madness



My favourite - I got to get more metallic thread.



I repeat, I have to get more metallic thread :)

So I have about 250 yds of roughly worsted weight yarn and I've already ordered a contrasting colour - grape- from Vicky at Kendig Cottage. I think I might attempt a shrug when I finish spinning the grape up.

What's on the bobbin now.




This luscious merino silk in Concord colourway, it's mostly black but the flash brings out the blue purple tone in it. I'm spinning it fine - almost fingering weight. This is like the roving that never ends. I haven't even used half and look how much I have on the bobbin.

How will I ply this? Not sure. Maybe I need to get more metallic thread :)!!

Circular Beginnings

I've always wanted to start The Kerry Blue Shawl from Martha Waterman's Traditional Knitted Lace Shawls. But I've put it off because of that dratted circular cast on.

Thanks to my new Gathering of Lace book I followed the instructions for one of the cast-on methods where you do knits and yo into a loop. ( don't have my book handy but I'll post more details next time)

Still I had to modify further because my silly dpns kept falling out. So I decided to knit back and forth for about 4 rows before joining the stitches on circulars and knitting using the Magic Loop method.



Kerry Blue Shawl 4.0mm needles using Sirdar Snuggly 3 ply


After a few rows you pull the loop and it closes nicely with no funny hole in the middle of the work. There is little gap between the first 4 rows but nothing a bit of seaming won't fix.

I'm getting right into the groove of this square shawl. Take a look at Polly's finished shawl. I always seem to need to see another finished project before I find the motivation to start my own.

This little shawl is going to one of my very best friend's new poppet, Caitlin, in Hong Kong. Caitlin's mummy and I went to university together and she's one those friends that I have no trouble picking up the threads with each time we meet, which is not very often. She's also one of the few friends I knitted for in varsity and she's always talked nostalgically about her favourite knitted sweater (now long departed) with that yarn I got on sale from the local department store.

It will take too long to knit something for Caitlin's mum, so Caitlin gets a nice blankie instead.


NB I know I promised more pics of the Iris Garden yarn but it was a hectic weekend with my in-laws visiting. Will try to get more pics in sunlight tomorrow.

Plied

I promised a pic of the Iris Garden plied.
Well I have one but the pic is not as nice as I thought it would be. I'll be taking more this weekend in natural light.



From the top
Plied with one band of metallic thread.
Navajo plied ( 3 ply)
2 ply from both ends of the bobbin.

My favourite is the metallic ply - its shimmery airiness gives a little novelty to my roughly spun single ply. I'm getting better at going thinner now and that's why my second favourite is the 2 ply .
I plied for each end of the bobbin meaning I did not keep the colour ways intact so I got a real nice barbershop duo-tone effect on some parts of the yarn. Plus since I'm spinning thinner , so it's not as bulky as the Navajo plied. I need more practice before I think I can produce Navajo plied yarn to my satisfaction .

So there we are - now what to knit with the yarn.

*I hab a gold*

I'm not in a good mood. My son gave me this terrible cold. Well, he had a slight fever for two days, I get stuck with the full works of stuffy nose, cough and sore throat.

And on top of that I'm pissed with this Opal sock



Yeah. It looks so sweet right? Such cute colours, nicely shaped and all that. Well, looks are deceiving.




See? Can you see the problem? It doesn't fit! I started the heel too soon and now it's an inch too short. And because of that the ribbing has ridden down and starts in the thickest part of my ankle, the one place that really shouldn't have any type of ribbing near it. It's fat enough.

And all because *I hab a gold* and was grumpy and impatient, I wanted to do the short row heels and finish this sock already.

Anyway this came in today




I think I won't be in to work tomorrow. *I hab a gold*. I deserve to stay home and drool.

Iris Garden

It was our version of Independance Day yesterday, we call it " Merdeka Day". when we Malaysian celebrated the day we declared our Independance from British Rule.

Which means parades, and the obligatory morning shower ( I don't know why but it happens almost every year), lots of lolling around and watching TV.

I spent the whole day spinning up my Iris Garden Corriedale Roving from Kendig Cottage.
I 've spun up most of the yarn but in order to free up my bobbins , I had to start plying immediately ( OK this just means I have to get some extra bobbins). So I decided to try 3 ways of plying.

First up, for those of you who would like to find out the best way to spin up multicoloured roving check out The Keyboard Biologist's post on how she handled multi coloured roving she dyed herself - gorgeous colour!!

Another great article is in Sara Bradberry's Southern Cross Knitting article - Spinning Handpainted Roving

First method of plying I tried was to ply with a metallic thread as a binder - which resulted in this pretty skein of yarn


86 yds of Iris Garden yarn waiting for its bath in the kitchen sink
<>
Take a closer look at the pretty shimmery metallic binding fluffy pastel yarn


Second method of plying I tried was Andean Plying - which created a 3 ply cable of ropy type yarn which is probably sturdier but did not capture the ethereal beauty of this colourway. I tried to get a pic but my camera batteries died on me. so stay tuned for updated pics soon.

I intend to try another method of plying - ie - plying a bobbin back on itself after winding on to a center pull ball. The result may be either a muddied up yarn of all colours, or a lovely heathering of these pastels.

That's the fun about spinning - we'll just have to see what happens.

Lotus Blooms

I couldn't get someone to model it for me but I did get someone to take a photo of me modeling the Lotus Blossom Shawl.






The colours are much nicer once it's blocked. And it's sooooo light. I just realised that Fleece Artist Country Silk - the recommended yarn- is actually a sport weight not lace weight, which would account for the size and weight difference. My shawl is 72" across but only 36" in length. No matter, it suits us vertically-challenged asians well enough.

This is now going to be wrapped and ribboned for my Mum as her birthday gift this weekend. Just as well I finished it ahead of time. I have to give credit to the start of the English Premier League season. Sitting through match after match with my husband gives me plenty of time to knit.

What next?

I started the Silk corset and got the arm holes done. I tried to put my arm through and it embarrassingly got stuck halfway up my upper arm. So that's in the frogpond for the moment.

I've been toying with an idea of a A- Line top down lacy cardigan and with some encouragement from Lyn,I'm going to try it out this weekend.

Lotus Blossoming

Blossoming but not yet blooming - the Lotus Blossom shawl lies blocked on a hideous old quilt. Forgive the jarring green stripes - must remember to use my nice cream duvet for blocking and photography purposes.




It does look much better blocked so that sections of contrasting colours don't clash and jar side by side.







More pictures will be posted once I get it off the pins and cajol someone to model it.

Sneek Peek

I just got to show this quick peek at the completed but very crumpled Lotus Blossom Shawl.


Lotus Blossom Shawl from Fiddlesticks .
Cherry Tree Hill Merino Laceweight - Colourway: Dusk
Approx 600- 700 yds



I am not too pleased with the colourway - that sudden splash of electric purple does distract from this very lovely design. But this is one pattern I'm pretty sure I will do again.

What shall be my next lace project? I'm still deciding between giving Inky Dinky another try or Madli's shawl, from Interweave Summer 2004.

For some reason, my husband wants to take me out to dinner tonight. But I can't wait to get this little number blocked out. Tough Call huh!

Stash and Spinning

I've been going nuts with the sock stash lately - have a look at the two Opals I just ordered from Astrid's Dutch Obsession - The purply one is a prototype and the other one is an Opal Rodeo 1153. Astrid has great prices and wonderful service so take a look if you're interested in getting some Opals.


Forgive the me-trying-to-be-artisitic photo


And finally some spinning stash! Nice hand dyed corridale and romney blend from Kendig Cottage.



500 gms each of springy roving


Celia's been asking about my spinning. Well I finally managed to ply the Jacobs and the cream Corridale last week, gave it a nice warm bath and hung it to dry in the bathroom -



I'm glad to say that there was hardly any twist so it's fairly balanced.

Take a closer look at the good bits

and then the bad bits where the yarn is terribly overtwisted


Now comes the perennial new spinner's question - what shall I do with this yarn? I want to commemorate its creation in a special way. Perhaps a wall hanging?

*BTW Lyn told me that there's something wrong with my comment section. And here I thought I must have offended everybody cos I wasn't getting any comments. You can still comment by sending me an email. I'll put it up on the blog.

Hazy Hawaii Happy Dance

I wanted to wait for a good day of natural sunlight to take the photo of my completed Lorna's Laces Hawaii Socks but sadly, we're a little hazy in the Klang Valley at the moment.




In fact it's gotten so bad, some parts of my state is under a state of emergency, with closures of schools and public places.

Here's a pic of the socks anyway.





It turned out too big for me but fits my sister perfectly so guess who gets to to cuddle up to these on those cold (but non-hazy) winter nights in NZ.





Strangely enough, there was no sign of the dreaded Second Sock syndrome. I found my second sock went faster rather than slower, possibly because I no longer have to refer to the pattern all the time. yeh I know they don't match but hey I am not that fussed. Next up, toe up socks with Opal.

On the Lotus Blossom Shawl, I have it on good authority that when you have finished half the number of rows, you're only a quarter of the way through in terms of yarn.

So with some handy tips from the Summer of Lace group, I managed do up a shawl spreadsheet and figured out that at Row 121 of 166, I am only 50% complete. So no problems with yarn there.

I am targetting 1st September for the completion of either the Lotus Blossom or the Plaza, after which I just have to start the Silk corset pullover from Anne Modesitt.

City of Angels

Before I leave you with a few brief scenes of Bangkok/ Krung Thep/City of Angels - I got to show you what I am currently working on

Lotus Blossom Shawl



I am getting a little worried. I'm almost to the lotus blossom part and it really doen't look anywhere as big as it should. I am using Cherry Tree Hill Laceweight Merino in Dusk colourway. Beautiful yarn and it seems never ending. I got about 1000 yards which I would into 4 balls and I haven't finished 1 ball yet. Is it time for me to panic yet??


Hawaii Sock Part Two




I am just about ready to divide up for the heel. This is the sucky part cos I have to figure out the needle 1 ,2 & 3 position although I am knitting with a circular. My problem is that I always slip the last stitch of the needle on to the next one to reduce those terrible ladders by the side. So I am never at the same position at any one time. Sigh! toe-up and short row heels for the next sock, I promise.

And now I leave you with scenes of that exotic city.

Back from Bangkok

I got back from my extended weekend in Bangkok with my mum and sister on Monday when I was plunged in this crazy whirl of work. Some corporate visitors on very short notice, resulting spending two sleepless nights completing a presentation.


Bangkok has only two knitting related sites worth visiting that I know of, which I had detailed in my previous post.


The only thing I managed to score was this Knitting book

which I have wanted ever since it has been mentioned in the Laceknitters Yahoo Group.


It's not easy to figure out. The charts are for sections of a circle but after a certain row- the chart expands to the entire row for some reason I can't fathom. Anyone out there who has this book ? Maybe you can help me decipher it.


I haven't been spinning but I did the sleeves of the Plaza, late Wednesday night, just hours before we got on the taxi to the airport for our early Thursday morning flight. I brought my Lotus Blossom shawl to Bangkok and so far have managed to reach Row 97.


All this running around has made me a little short for cash so I am destashing again. Check my destash site for some Japanese Mohair and vintage Phildar mohair yarn for sale.

One Sock Down

Finally finished one LL Hawaii Dublin Bay Sock.

Tried it on Dh and the conversation goes :

DH: " Hey there's holes!"

Me: "It's just lace, dear"

DH: "And it's such a girly green!" *looks into my knitting bag and takes out my hoarded ball of LL Motherlode* "Can I have one in this purply yarn instead?" *pause* "With no holes? And lots of ribbing?"

Me: "Grrrrr!"








Showed it to my sis and the conversation goes
Sis: "Hey cool!"
Me: "Do you want it? I'm working on the other pair"
Sis: "err... umm.. why don't you keep it for when you come and visit me in NZ?"
Me: *thinking haven't been to NZ in 10 years and not likely to visit in the next 10 years* "Grrrr!"

But seriously I am glad that this pair is ending up with me - I've grown to like it. I'm not too happy with the toe, and the way the striping doesn't go all the way around but otherwise I've sweated too much over it not to love it.





The next pair of socks I want to make is Marnie's toe up socks - as soon as she posts the pattern.

--------------------------------------
I had a great time at Jackie's seaming party last Saturday. I can't remember the last time I had Sticky date pudding but I know I must have it again soon. Absolutely yummy. What have I been missing all these years?


You know after that seaming party, I went home and dreamt squares. I have to take my hat off to Jackie's discipline and endurance to be able to produce so many squares and to stick by a project for almost that long. Way to go Jackie!

--------------------------------------

So on to my monday round up one day late
*Updates are in bold red*

Lacy Tunic from Rebecca 28
Jaeger Trinity Violet :- one back done


Green Lacy top from Japanese Magazine
Marks and Kattens Bianca :- one back done - to be frogged


Bracken Tweed Cardigan for my sis - one sleeve done


Fiddlesticks Lacy Lattice Stole
Filatura Di Crosa Kid Mohair - 30% done


Pseudo Gansey from Japanese Magazine
Filatura di Crosa Zara :- one front and one sleeve done


Pink Grapes from Japanese Magazine
Yarnart Summer Cotton :- Two sleeves done


Plaza from Rowan Classic Cafe
Cleakheaton Country 8 ply - one back done
*Almost up to the shoulder shaping on the humungous two sleeves at once. I hope to finish the sleeves by Friday*



Fiddlestick Lotus Blossom Shawl
Cherry Tree Hill Merino Laceweight Dusk- less than 12%
* Up to Row 83 - that's 166 stitches*


Crochet Flower Vest
Online Linea Sandy - 35%
*Finished off two balls - only 2.5 balls to go*



From the comments -

Jessica - there is no way to get any roving here in Malaysia - the only source is to get it online from AUS, NZ or US
MJ - My sis lugged 6.5 kg of this spinning wheel back from NZ for me.
Celia - I'll try to post the embarassing close-ups of my bad bobbins of yarn tomorrow.

Joy out of the box

Finally the Ashford Joy was unveiled and assembled last night.



Joy out of the box


Following the instructions were easy and even a klutz like me could screw the right thing at the right places - or so I thought. And learn some cool new spinning jargon as well. Such as "Flier"



"Fli-er" - the thing that goes round and winds the yarn on to the bobbin.


And here is my baby all assembled and ready to go.


The lump in the background is my husband reading "Harry Potter 6", who , after blinking several times, did not lift a finger to help. Which is understandable, it's "Harry Potter" after all.


Well it took me at least an hour to figure out why the yarn wasn't winding on to the bobbin. It was screwed in the wrong way :).

Then I was practicing pre drafting fibers and feeding it in strips the way one did with the hand spindle but that didn't work at all for me. I keep getting huge overtwisted yarn and I just knew I wasn't getting into the right rhythm.

Using the spindle it was easy to stop and start to smooth over the kinks down the draft but a moving spinning wheel was going much faster than I would have liked it to.


Bobbin full of Bad yarn.


I decided to change track and spin from the fold. And then light bulb came on and I was into the groove. Pinch! Pull! Feed ! I got the rhythm! Except the instructions said the drafting hand should come up to the pinching hand wherelse my pinching hand is coming down to the end of the draft and then back up towards the Orifice (that's the hole you feed the fiber through to the Flier).

Yarn is still overtwisted at places cos I haven't go the knack of stopping the wheel from back spinning.





But all in all 2oz of fiber spun last night and I think I am going to run through my last 4 oz of sampler fiber I got from Inspirations Yarn in the next couple of days. I haven't placed a fiber order yet and that will take another 3 weeks to arrive at least.

What am I going to do in the meantime?